WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Doctor Who: Missy #1 by Jody Houser, Roberta Ingranata, Enrica Eren Angiolini, Shari Chankhamma and Comicraft's Richard Starkings, on sale now.
In Doctor Who: Missy #1, the fan-favorite female version of the Master returns to the franchise. Like the Doctor, the Master is a Time Lord, and the character has gone through multiple regenerations in Doctor Who's 58-year history. In the Season 8 premiere, 2014's "Deep Breath," Missy made her debut in the television series as the first female version of the Doctor's nemesis. During Peter Capaldi's tenure, Missy and the Twelfth Doctor crossed paths on many occasions and throughout her appearances in Seasons 8, 9 and 10, she quickly became a fan-favorite character as she redeemed the Master to become something of an antihero.
Unfortunately, all good things come to an end. Missy died in the Season 10 finale, leaving the door open for yet another version of the Master to take her place. But now, Missy makes her triumphant return to the franchise in Doctor Who: Missy #1. And in this appearance, she debuts her very own costume as she pretends to be the Doctor.
In the comic book, Missy visits the Stormcage Containment Facility in the 52nd century, a futuristic prison that first appeared in Doctor Who's fifth season. There, she intends to visit a very specific inmate: the first version of the Master. Doctor Who's original Master was played by Roger Delgado, and he faced off with the Third Doctor from 1971 to 1973. In the comic, we come to understand that, after his latest defeat to the Third Doctor, the Master was incarcerated in Stormcage.
Missy has plans to break him out and, in order to do that, she needs to infiltrate the supermax prison. But Missy doesn't attack or create a big scene. Instead, she walks through the front door, and passes security by convincing them that she is the Doctor.
To help her sell the charade, Missy shows up wearing her own version of the Doctor's costume: she's got a hat, of course, but this time, it's decorated with yellow plastic duckies. She's got matching colors in blue and orange, a large question mark on her skirt that homages the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Doctors, an umbrella, and mismatched socks and gloves that complete her ensemble.
All of this creates a distinct and colorful look for Missy that could easily pass as a goofy Doctor Who costume. It also shows what exactly she thinks of the Doctor's look, and it's clearly meant as a jab at her nemesis' more outlandish getups. But it does the trick, and she is allowed to pass the prison's security. What's also funny about Missy posing as the Doctor is that she insists on being called "Doctor Who." She calls it new branding, but this is also a play on the series' past, which credited the main character as "Doctor Who" instead of "The Doctor."
Missy's turn as "Doctor Who" is a fun way to bring the character back. It pokes fun at the series' mythology in a way that is so very much Missy, and it sets up a promising team-up between her and the Master. The big question is, however, will she reveal to her counterpart that she is his future self, or will she continue to have him believe she is the Doctor -- er, Doctor Who.